Kinzli & the kiloWatts -  DOWN UP DOWN

 

Following 2007's critically acclaimed 'Going Just To Be Going', Kinzli returns with 'Down Up Down' (under Kinzli & The kiloWatts) - an album the singer-songwriter herself believes to be a musical progression. 'It's more thought-out,' she explains. 'It came from my being more settled and not worrying about survival; reflecting on what's important instead of trying to get away from things.'

 

Recording predominantly in her living room, Kinzli self-funded the project while still teaching Maths and Physics full-time. Drawing on her classical influences, she recruited pianist Vince Webb and violinist Barbara Bartz to help realise her vision. The album eventually became a huge collaborative process, with musicians and synths alike forming the unexpectedly cohesive mix. 'I arranged the album in my head, and would try to convey the separate instrumental parts to the musicians by singing or thumping. I got a lot of strange looks.' The lo-fi record was then passed on to Gigi Piscitelli's safe hands, where it was cleaned of street noises and shouting neighbours.

 

As its title suggests, 'Down Up Down' is a record about struggle, whether personal or political, and addresses Kinzli's background more directly than the debut. Having spent her early childhood in a South Korean orphanage, plagued by TB, she passed through several foster homes before being adopted by an American family from Colorado and ending up in London, where she intends to remain. This has resulted in a more mature, genre-blending and experimental album that explores themes of peace, independence, safety and child welfare.

 

Album opener 'Don't Shoot' is a haunting ballad inspired by gang violence on Kinzli's doorstep. 'The Land Of Il (3 Part Dance)' is an attack on Kim Jung Il's 'mass games', in which crowds of brainwashed citizens perform for their leader. The album is not all dark, however, choosing to lift its head towards hope; 'We Walk For Peace' encourages the people of Burma to get behind their spiritual leaders and march for independence, while moving album closer 'Safe Place For Us' blends its sadness with the comforting promise of security.

 

Kinzli has been accused of 'genre-whoring', an achievement she embraces wholeheartedly. 'If you thought the debut was a genre-whore, I'll give you genre-whore,' she kids - except she's not really kidding. Mixing folk with gypsy rhythms, jazz, operatic vocals, synth drums and ukelele dance breaks (sometimes all within one track), the ten songs can stand individually but fit perfectly together - rather like people in Kinzli's dream world.

 

For Kinzli, song-writing and recording are very visual experiences; every song is a movie, and every instrument is a character. Her increasing involvement with video is, therefore, unsurprising. Having filmed a music video for 'Don't Shoot' for £23, she has been inspired to work further with its director, Polis Loizou, with the goal of creating a companion video for each track on the album, and eventually bringing both visual and musical elements together for a live show.

 

No matter what musical direction Kinzli decides to follow next, she will always have firm roots in her past while looking to the future. The Rockies may be far behind her now, but they still feature on the album cover.